This invention relates to configuring an electronic compass for use regardless of the mounting orientation of the compass.
Modern vehicles include an ever-increasing number of devices that assist drivers and occupants (collectively “users”) with the task of navigating the vehicle. For example, electronic compasses, such as digital compasses using a printed circuit board to determine a vehicle's compass heading, provide users with valuable navigation information as they operate their vehicles. Moreover, other devices within the vehicle can benefit from accessing the navigation information provided by a compass. For example, a Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation system might use compass information to augment the GPS information at low or stationary speeds where GPS-only systems experience reduced accuracy.
Despite the advantages provided by vehicle compasses, at present including a compass within a vehicle is often expensive. For example, due to space constraints and varying vehicle designs, the circuit board for the compass must be installed in different vehicles in a wide variety of different placements and orientations. In one type of vehicle, the circuit board may be installed in a right-side up manner, facing the front portion of the vehicle. In another type of vehicle, the circuit board could be installed in an upside-down manner, and at a substantial angle with respect to the front portion of the vehicle. Different placements and orientations of the circuit board need to be compensated for if the compass is to provide useful information to the occupants of the vehicle. Presently, however, the need to compensate for installation-specific attributes prevents the installation of a single compass in different vehicles with different installation configurations. Thus, at present, it is often expensive and inefficient for vehicle manufacturers and their suppliers to provide compasses in vehicles.
Accordingly, there is a need for a compass with the ability to compensate for different installation configurations in a vehicle. In particular, it would be desirable to be able to compensate compass output to allow a plurality of acceptable mounting placements and orientations for a single compass in a vehicle.